China's Evergrande denies AC Milan deal

Guangzhou, July 1 (IANS) Chinese football club Guangzhou Evergrande has rejected reports that it is involved in the acquisition of Italian Serie A giants AC Milan.

"Those reports are sheer rumours, I've never heard of any plan to buy any foreign football club," a top Evergrande official told Xinhua on Friday.

Milan are currently controlled by Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's former Prime Minister.

Italian media reported on Thursday that Berlusconi had already agreed a deal worth 750 million euro (around $832.1 million) with a group of Chinese investors led by Baidu CEO Robin Li and "leader of Evergrande group".

"Actually, I am not surprised at this kind of news. We've got used to it," the official said on condition of anonymity.

"We have been linked with at least a dozen of companies since last year. Chinese companies have been very active in the world football industry, and Evergrande is a familiar company to foreign media, so we frequently made headlines," he added.

The Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao club, currently owned by Evergrande group and E-commerce giant Alibaba, has been a strategic partner of AC Milan since December 2012.

Meanwhile, Baidu could not be reached for comment immediately.

Chinese companies have been showing a growing interest in football since the country unveiled a reform plan last year that aims to make China a major power in the game.

China's Desports spent 37 million euros ($41 million) to complete the acquisition of 98 per cent stake in Spanish top-flight side Granada.

Last year, listed company Rastar purchased a major stake in Spanish club Espanyol, and Chinese entrepreneurs have already acquired minority stakes in England's Manchester City and Spain's Athletic Madrid as well.